Landholders’ engagement in restoring Brazil’s Atlantic Forest is linked with livelihood compatibility and legal compliance

Many countries globally have committed to restoring forested landscapes on a large scale.Yet, there is limited understanding of why people engage with restoration programs and theassociated social impacts, hindering efforts to scale restoration. This study examines thedrivers for landholder engagement in farmland restoration in Brazil's Pontal doParanapanema region of the Atlantic Forest. Using mixed methods, including surveys, semistructuredand key informant interviews, we find that compatibility with immediate needs isstrongly associated with engagement among smallholders. Compliance with environmentallegislation is associated with large landholders’ engagement in restoration. Furthermore, landtenure insecurity for smallholders and changes in rules over time for large landholders couldrestrict long-term engagement. Formalizing land tenure and developing mechanisms thatsupport smallholder engagement could increase restoration uptake, while the stability ofexisting environmental policy might encourage large landholder engagement.